To the editor:
In his critique of President Trump's rhetoric as having "character" and "clarity" but lacking "unity," Philip Collins is laboring under the wrong idea that President Trump actually wants to unify the country. He does not.
Trump's whole appeal was to certain favored sectors of the population—notably working-class white males who feel attacked by the social, cultural and demographic changes of the last 50 years—to whom he promised a return to their glory days. Trump is a classic demagogue, picking out "real Americans" and casting others—Mexicans, Muslims, immigrants, people of color—as the enemies he will successfully vanquish and thus "make America great again."
Like his unpredictable decision-making style, his direct appeals to his fans via Twitter and his love of flattery and military displays, his speaking style shows that Trump wants to be a dictator instead of a powerful but constitutionally limited president.
Mark Gabrish Conlan, San Diego
